A folding screen is useful for dividing space, but it can do so much more.

“It really is a great way to bring in scale, texture, artistry or a decorative moment,” said Thom Filicia, the New York-based interior designer.

Screens, he noted, are essentially pop-up architecture.

Mr. Filicia uses them to separate various seating areas in one big space, or to soften the corners of a room. He uses them to hide ugly heating and air-conditioning equipment, and to frame or emphasize furniture, mirrors and art. And he has used them to create privacy in glass-walled apartments.

While room dividers were once de rigueur in professionally designed interiors, they are a little less common today. But Mr. Filicia thinks they’re due for a pandemic-driven comeback.

“Now that everyone’s doing home offices, I think screens are really going to go through a renaissance,” he said, because they’re an ideal way to create some physical separation between work and leisure. “Our personal spaces are becoming more multifunctional.”

Upholstered screen with panels of different sizes

$640 at ABC Carpet & Home: 646-602-3101 or abchome.com


Steel screen with mirrored panels by Yabu Pushelberg

$2,200 at Stellar Works: 646-606-3760 or stellarworks.com

Iron screen with woven banana-leaf panels

$349 at Urban Outfitters: 800-282-2200 or urbanoutfitters.com


Black-stained wood-and-cane screen with arched panels

$549 at Crate & Barrel: 800-967-6696 or crateandbarrel.com

Leather-and-metal screen by Sebastian Herkner

About $7,700 at 1stdibs: 1stdibs.com


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Source: | This article originally belongs to Nytimes.com

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